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Hi Mary-Anne,
Please can you let me know the recipe and technique for your gorgeous stripey swirl melts? I cannot find it anywhere online! They were so beautiful – like little roses.
Really loving this series of GBBO. Your creations are so interesting.
Very best,
Jennifer

I thought you were great on the show. The show was so inspirational to me. I have started a blog myself cookindad.blogspot.com I would love to share recipes with you and ideas….i have 2 children that I cook for and will definately be using some of your recipes.

I love all of your recipes, I never thought of putting the colour swirl in pastry, I have been using it for my cupcake rose frostings for ages, but this was a different twist, and can’t wait to use your Depression Era Buttercream, it might be a new recipe for my cupcakes!!!

Just stumbled across your blog – what a treasure trove! Really enjoying the Great British Bake Off and seeing your creations every week. For me, you’re the most innovative and creative baker full stop; I can only wish I could bake like that.

I’ve loved watching you on the Great British Bake Off. I admire your originality and creativity. Throughout the series, you have consistently come up with interesting ideas and taken a unique approach to the task in hand. I will be cheering you to win tonight – good luck. Aoife x

Well done Mary-Anne. You may not have won but you certainly didn’t disappoint with your creativity. I’ve been supporting you all series and really enjoyed your creations. Wishing you well with your future baking projects
Sophie Ibbs

Hi Mary-Anne, commiserations- loved your petit fours, definitely going to attempt to whip up some alcoholic meringues! Would love to see the recipe if you get a moment. (intensely jealous of your library btw!) R.

I just wanted to say how much I enjoyed watching you and being inspired by you! What a creative and imaginative baker you are!!! And everything looked so yummy! Well done Mary ann, I had you as my winner! Thank you for making me want to bake again, and helping me to share my passion with my boys x

Was rooting for you Mary-Anne but though it was so difficult for the judges to choose pity it couldn’t have been a tie! Have really enjoyed this series and thought you would be in the final from the word go. I loved the last challenge and your fruit tartswere absolutely beautiful. Well done!

It was a really tricky one for the judges, I don’t know if I could have called it, the three of you were so close. One thing I will say is that even if you didn’t win – it’s your recipies that I remember and have searched for online. You got me with the flower pots and the rose posies. I think that says a lot about your creativity and how much you have inspired other people. I’ve been thinking how we could get you a video blog going called ‘Mary Anne’s Kitchen’ or something so you can show people the techniques you’ve come up with – or come across. Things that might have been long lost until you dug them up from your archives and had a crack at. I’ve got a friend who is married to an amazing mexican chef and apparently he’s getting a big following with his online video blog. A cookery book with a DVD included showing techniques, that’s never been done I don’t think, it would be great! I’ll bet there’s plenty of publishers interested in you and the potential goldmine in your head. There’s so much I think you could do now that you’ve got everyone’s attention (and yes we’re all looking at you) 🙂

Planning to try some of your recipes from on here, if any of them are successful I’ll post photos and details of where the recipes came from to my blog pixiemidori.blogspot.com.

You may not have won, but you’ve been an inspiration to hundreds of people like me, who like to try different things but maybe don’t manage to pull it off first time and keep laughing and trying regardless.

You clearly love your food and your flavours and baking and you really have inspired me to follow in your footsteps – look out for me on the telly in a couple of years, I might just make it!

I too was rooting for you – so sorry you did not win – you have been such an inspiration both creatively and technically for these 7 weeks. The blog is wonderful and so informative. Well done and thank you. Annie

Well done on your cracking baking on GBBO, sorry you didn’t win, but boy you were good & deserved to. It was a great final to watch & you all did brilliantly under the pressure. Like others above have said, I had you as winner & I’ve thoroughly enjoyed all your bakes as your ideas are so different. Good luck in whatever you do next.

Huge congratulations! What a wonderful programme – I was rooting for you.
Everyone on the show made it look so easy though … I took on a genoise sponge in an attempt to do a layered mousse cake over the weekend…and it was a LOT harder than it seemed!
I hope you’re enjoying a bit of time out after the show, and look forward to reading more on the blog.

Love the blog and will really miss watching you on the Bake Off. Fantastic achievement and some great-looking bakes.
I too have no formal training and many, many cookery books, which I am using to teach myself. Watching your baking made me hopeful for my own endeavours, thanks x

Congratulations on making the final of the bake off and sorry you did not win.
Just wanted to tell you that you are my favorite, i love your baking and i have learned so much watching you. I love your sense of humor and your little jokes, you made me laugh a lot too 🙂
Thank you for sharing all your recipes, i will try as many as i can 🙂
well done,
Take care

Mary Ann
I have really enjoyed watching you on the Great British Bake Off. I am not a cake/ pastry/ dessert person, and can’t cook/bake to save my life….., but I wanted to devour everything you made – everything always looked so tasty and delicious. Well done on getting so far and best of luck.
Jean

such a great shame to see you not win your personality was sore refreshing.
Your genuine warmth and niceness and praise of your fellow competitors
above all your expertise and inventiveness and, skill-fullness way outshone your competitors.
I shall look forward to reading and trying your recipes.

YOU DARED TO SHOW OFF SKILLS AND DO SOMETHING DIFFERENT other than follow or over practice a recipes.

you reminded me of many a time in the kitchen when i was young with my gran…….. ..
Hopefully someone will ask you to write books and give you a series you have so much knowledge and passion and each week you had us hooked as to what skill or technique you would use.

Mary-Anne!
I know that since the final was aired tonight you’ll be inundated with messages so this may seem like a drop in the ocean amongst all the well-wishers but congrats for doing so well in the final! I was rooting for you all along- it seemed as though you had the creativity and the research to be better than Holly/Jo, you just perhaps lacked the execution at times to push yourself ahead of them skill-wise. Nonetheless you were still fantastic and your stripy cakes (the orange-chocolate one and the rose-sponge) looked utterly fantastic so well done!!
I also have a keen interest in food history- I’ve just finished a masters degree in history at Cambridge, specialising in the history of chocolate in 17th century England. I also wrote my undergrad dissertation on (probably Yorkshire) manuscript recipe books in seventeenth century England.
If you’d like to have a read of these I’d be more than happy to e-mail them over to you- the chocolate dissertation in particular details some really interesting flavour combinations and reminds us (as history always does) that what we think is new is actually very very old. Chocolate and chilli? We mastered that yeaaaaaaaars ago. Please do get in touch with me- I’ve handed my e-mail over to the gods of your blog so you’ll hopefully find it there.
Congratulations again- you still are my favourite.
Best wishes,
Amy x

Commiserations Mary Ann but you must feel proud of yourself because your recipes were so inspiring and deffinately the most technically challenging of ALL the GBB contestants. You were so entertaining that I felt compelled to watch each episode and so looked forward to Tuesday evenings to see what delicasy you would be creating. What on earth am I to do on Tuesday evenings now ??? Try some of your delicious recipes for myself, THANKYOU

Dear Mary Ann,
I was very angry about the comment from Hollywood yesterday “revolting” well you don’t arrive at the finalist if you are revolting and in fact every single thing you and Janet made during the program was absolutely delicious, I wander is the house next door to yours for sale???
Love you and your magic hands in the kitchen….
Muriel

You were the reason i tuned in every week. I loved how you thought outside the box and put your twist on old recipies. Now i know about your blog i will be logging in regularly. I’ve already made my list of your recipes i’m going to try.

Mary Ann I have to say my partner and I were rooting for you all the way, you are so origiinal, creative, and very funny, love your sense of humour and approach to the whole thing. You should have a TV show or at the very least, a BOOK, so get busy young lady, your public awaits you!! Alan Dublin Ireland 🙂

What are we going to do on Tuesday nights now?
All our family loved watching the baking, and I seem now to be doing more than I used to.
I had you down as the winner as you were inventive and interesting. I’ve now found your blog and am going to try some of the things you put on it.
Thank you for 7 weeks of pleasure.

Just wondering about the tin that you used in the show stopper challenge where you made the pin strip sponge. You then made the sponge and cut it and put it into a tin to line with the sponge. What was the tin becasue I have been looking for those small tins with the false tin and could not find them. Can you point me in the right direction

Hi Sam – it’s called a mini cheesecake pan and Lakeland currently have one for £19.99 – bit pricey! You could do something similar (and a lot cheaper) by using ‘improvised baking rings’ (see blog post on muffins) Happy baking! 😀

Hello Mary-Anne
I loved your final entry. It all looked so beautiful and made my mouth water … wish I could have bitten into some of it. I was really interested in all your recipes throughout the series GBBO and will definitely try some out.
Good luck with everything. I think you are a wonderful cook. Oh, and well done.

absolutely amazing Mary Ann !!!
you are an inspiration , loved you [and janet, and jo ] on the show
and am very envious of your cook book collection
although i’m sure there’s room on the shelf for 1 more written by you !
thank goodness for your blog i have G.B.B.O withdraw symptoms already

I thought you were the star of the bake-off show and you’re certainly the main reason I watched. I’m sure you’re not too disappointed about not winning the final – although I thought you would be a ‘choux’ in! You were also very gracious and kind.
Hope we haven’t seen the last of you – I’d buy your book if one comes out and watch your programme.
XXX
John Martin Fulton

Congratulations on getting to the final, I have just watched it and I am more inspired than ever! It will be stripy sponge from now on, Its my daughters 5th birthday in november and i’d like to try something a bit different however if I skimp on chocolate she will have my head on a plate…any ideas?
What a great blog, i’m on maternity leave at the moment with my third child and since watching GBBO I have started the ‘maternity leave baking project’ I will be on here daily from now on. I love the tip about using pea tins as baking rings. What about a section on improvised stuff?
Anyway well done again you’re a star
E x

Dear Mary Anne,
Just wanted to let you know that I am a HUGE fan !!!!
The things you create are truly amazing and I shall hope to see much more of you in the future !!!
I came across you blog and seen your last name : Boermans ! Surely thats a Dutch name.
I moved over from Holland to England 4 months ago… So I was pleasantly surprised when i saw your last name…
Anyway..
I wish you the best of luck.. and whatever happens.. Youll always have that special something others dont have !!!

Hi Mary-Anne,
so sorry you did’nt win GBBO. From the start i could see that you were the most instinstive of the bakers and so you proved to be with each successive programme.Your flavour combinations nothing short of sensational!
I hope you had some fun along with the very hard work.
At the end of the programme they said that you wrote a food blog,so i immediately looked you up. WHAT A FIND!!
Thanks so much and many,many congratulations.

Hi! Well done with the show 🙂 just wondering what the mixture is that you freeze on baking trays for the sponge designs … I don’t have rewind on my tele and want to try a zebra and tiger print designs for a cave girl themed party!

Like the others, we were very disappointed you didn’t win.Your originality and knowledge made the show even more interesting.Thank you for taking part and imparting some of your secrets to us mere mortals.We salute you and your witty asides.The silver fox judge made himself look foolish and petty.I think Mary Berry was shocked at his brutal comment.I hope you remember all the positives and don’t let that unsporting negative remain in your very creative mind.
Sacha is a lucky little girl to have you as her mummy and cookery mentor.
You have been a very watchable inspiration.Good luck to you for the future.

I have just seen the final (had it taped as was unable to watch it on the night). Loved your humour and thought you did fantastically well! I’m so pleased you’re doing a blog, I will be an avid follower. Keep up the good work!

Just found your blog. Loved what you did in the competition -some fantastic and inventive recipes. Best bit? When you wrote Sacha on the Sacher torte- Love it!!! Well done for getting to the final- have to say thought you should have won.

Hello Mary-Anne, just wanted to say well-done for making it thru to the final and a huge thank you for your consistently innovative & entertaining baking and your refreshingly relaxed attitude to the competition: I thought your comment about Jo not realising how talented she actually was, was a very gracious and utterly self-less thing to say in contrast to every other contemporary TV competition which is all about winning and stuff-all to do with skill or talent.

Many of your creations have inspired this little baking hovel, and we will be trying (and no doubt collapsing on the floor in stitches at how badly things have gone wrong again!) many of them out very soon, which will be a challenge as we are both gluten-free but have found ways to adapt a lot of recipes quite well, though we love a challenge where messing with the gluten in a recipe is a key factor in the success of the bake.

Lastly, thank you for some of the best moments of telly – the swirl-the-wrong-way-round cake was a highlight, but loved that you saw the funny side. But the sofa watched from behind hands when the piping nozzle fell off in the MilleFeuille – what a rollercoaster.

Good luck with your future ventures and look forward to the blog posts

I was compelled to leave a comment on your blog because you need to know the positive influence and inspiration you have contributed to people! I have a baking fanatic 4 year-old daughter who was most indignant when you did not win but will continue to play ‘bake offs’ in the kitchen with me for a while yet!!

hi mary-anne
can i just say watching you over the last few weeks you have been a massive inspiration. im a 21 year old student nurse and have such a passion for baking. i would like to say that your bread you made looked yummy. and i would love for you to bring out a book or share recipes. good luck with all the future

Hi Mary Ann!
You were amazing on GBBO, I always watch the repeats on sunday 🙂
I was wondering if you were going to post the recipe for the meringues you made in the final?They looked amazing and I’d love to make them!
Keep up the good work 😀

Jo, you never knowed (or knew)
How Mary-Anne Boermans felt about you
Your secret cheerleader had such warm admiration
For your fours so petite, fit for any occasion

Mary Anne was mercurial, Jo so precise
They belong together as surely as sugar with spice
Just imagine the scene: an afternoon tea
By the Batman and Robin of patisserie

Mary-Anne without Jo is like yin without yang
Like a roll, type swiss, that’s all roll and no jam
Together their whole dwarfs the sum of each part
When last was home baking so akin to high art?

Stage left enter Hollywood, with his snarling jazz beard
Mary-Anne like a rock, no man has she ever feared
Of the syllabub not much did the heartless rogue think
Had he taken leave of his senses, or could he not take his drink?

But what’s this, a wedge driven between Hollywood and Berry?
A lady of 90% class and 10% sherry
The judge and contestant became comrades in arms
Fitting testament, perhaps, to Mary-Anne’s charms

Good luck Mary-Anne, you were brill on GBBO. Come back to our screens or onto our book shelves soon.

Mary-Anne – I agree with Phil and all the others – you should bring out a book. I got the GBBO book and gave it to a friend for her birthday! Was very disappointed with it as the recipes were all about Mary and Paul and Masterclasses and not about the bakers. Finally found your blog and there was the cakes with the apple roses on top. Love your innovative ideas and your blog will now be a daily read! Congratulations on reaching the final – really loved your work (and sense of humour!) Anne

Hi, Mary-Ann, I was watching the Great British Bake Off from the beginning to the end, and I have to say, you are the best!!! Just love every little bold but unique idea you have brought to the programme and your baking!!! read 700 baking books! certainly not every one can do this! even love your positive attitude when you cope with unexpected troubles. really looking forward to your book.–S.J.

Congratulations on doing so well in GBBO – loved your ways of using historical recipes and making them acceptable to the modern palate. I too have quite a few old books and reprints of others but have always used them for reading rather than cooking – you have inspired me to have a go and thank you for putting so many of your own recipes online. Even more please!

Hi Mary Ann,
Congrats on the Bake Off final. I loved your different style and independent attitude. Don’t go too dainty, the ‘rustic’ style was refreshing and I loved it – it’s the taste that matters after all. I’m looking forward to any cookbook, as of all the contestants I think you have something new to offer. Meantime, I’m enjoying your recipes here. Keep up the good baking!
Wendy

I was completely glued to you for the last few weeks. I kept telling people how amazing you were with your wonderful, delectable experiments and your truly beautiful attitude! You were so ingenious and always pushed yourself to go further and I loved the way you would actually create little back-ups too! I loved your inner confidence and humility, your nobleness and the way you were in every single episode. You took all the criticisms on the chin and dealt with them admirably.

After the show ended, I thought a lot about your attitude and how you were never overly gushy, falsely modest but always sincere and just tried new and fabulous things! You are a true innovator, always thinking, trying, experimenting and never giving up! (I would like to be like that!)

Please bring out your book. We loved your creations and everything looked so delicious and I desperately wanted to eat them! I am so glad that people agree how fabulous you are! You should have won but to me you always were the winner! Wishing you very well in your life : )

Would love the recipe for the butterscotch brule. It’s making my mouth water, just thinking of it as I’ve loads of apples to use at the moment and as for the Rose Apples, well I’ve just got to try that one.
Really enjoyed watching you on the great british bake-off

Greetings, Mary Ann from Long Beach, California. I just viewed the final, and I wanted to throttle Paul Hollywood. His words were rude, crude and unattractive. Seven hundred cookbooks? And I thought I had a houseful: not even close. I found the blog because I saw the comment at the end of the show. You have fans on multiple continents. Mary Lou Cook (I should have married a Baker).

Dear Mary-Ann – Well done on the most beautiful plate of petit-fours I’ve ever seen! I’m not a cook, or a once in a blue moon one, and your presentation in the Bake-Off final was celestial! The colours and textures were straight out of Keats’ description of the sumptuous table in the Eve of Saint Agnes and I am frantically downloading your recipes online on the bake-off site to ‘have a go’. I have so far found the Everlasting Syllabub and the Lemon and Ginger Millefeuilles, but I can’t remember the name of the third, and it is not there on the page it seems? Seriously, all power to your arm and again, sumptuous creativity!

Yessss! Maan the Mini Fruit Tarts with the Black, Red and White Currants. Gorgeous colours and glaze, and then the seaside rock stripe effect of the Strawb and Rhubarb cheesecakes! Thanks for that page link. I was finding it hard to navigate and clearly distracted by other, no doubt also fab recipes! Thrilled to have all three “showstoppers” now! I WILL have a go!

[…] Jason was voted off. In the final episode there was a little bio on the contestants including Mary-Ann who was filmed browsing through her collection of 700 cook books. My family turned and looked at […]

Hi Mary Ann,
my daughter has just tried your depression era buttercream and added rosewater to it, tastes lovely! She will be using it for her GCSE food tech. project next week with cupcakes, she loved your different ideas and will be trying more! Thank you.

Thank you for baking the apple cheesecake breakfast bars, the extra oats added to the base have made it more crunchy, the family came round and although there were only 8 of us, all 16 slices disappeared in seconds. Please bring out a book!

Wotchers Sandra! It depends on your budget, of course – but as a brand, I’d say Kenwood. They have some great all-in-one machines with food processors, juicers etc and at a range of prices too. Hope this helps! M-A 😀

I love your cakes!!! My only problem is I tried to make some bread the other day…and it takes ages to prove….. In the series you guys used some Tefal prover….or some other cabinet to put your pastry in..Can you help me to find out what is that because no matter how much I am looking at the internet, I can’t seem to indetify it.
Many thanks
Adrienn

Wotchers Adrienn – it was called a ‘proving drawer’ – nice, but totally unnecessary to spend money on. A slow rise could be due to old yeast, too little water or drafts. Put your bread in the oven to rise – it’ll be free from drafts! Check the date of your yeast and add slightly more liquid to your dough and see if these help at all. Happy baking! M-A

Wotchers Michelle! I don’t have a recipe for iced buns – do you mean the one from the Bake Off Semi-Final technical challenge? That one was Paul Hollywood’s. Or did you mean something else altogether? *confused* M-A

Greetings from San Francisco (watched recorded episodes just this week) –

Have to echo the others here: 1. Your moxie is what kept me watching to the finale, 2. I’d like to see a book with GBBO contestants’ recipes, especially yours!, 3. Thank you, sincerely, for sharing with us 🙂

My husband and I live in Canada and just discovered GBBO and I have to say, you were our favourite the whole time. We were rooting for you pretty much since the beginning. My husband is a huge fan of bread and he nearly fell out of his chair when he saw your Ploughman’s Loaf. We both want to stake a claim on copies of your cookbook as soon as it’s published! Keep up the astounding cooking. We’ll be watching your blog eagerly for new recipes.

Wotchers Kristall! Thank you for the lovely compliments – the Ploughman’s Loaf is on the blog if your husband fancies having a go at it! I’m keeping busy with baking and writing for the book, so stay tuned! Happy Baking! M-A 😀

Hello Mary-Anne
What a great performance on GBB. I so enjoyed watching you bake and the down to earth comments to go with it! It is amazing you have an old Dutch recipe dating back so William the Silent timeframe. Being Dutch I love our pancakes. Have you ever made our poffertjes? You need a special pan to make those but they are mouthwatering good. I love reading cookbooks myself and have quite a collection too. You were the winner for me!

Hi Mary-Ann,
I am an Australian fan who just finished watching the tv show online.
You were my favourite baker from day one and I loved the experimentation and fun in all your cakes, pies and cookies. The stripey cheese cakes and melting moment cookies were my favourite! Well done on making it through to the finals and thanks for being such an inspiration! Now that I have found your blog I am going to try some of your recipes.
All the best,
Shan
(21, female, Sydney Aust)

My wife and I enjoyed watching you on the GBBO. We were cheering for you! I’m an amateur baker from America who has a particular fascination with traditional British recipes. Can you recommend any cookbooks for someone who is interested in learning more about traditional British baking/cooking?

I have just stumbled across this great blog via the tv-series. I really enjoy watching TGBB and have watched the older episodes as well. I really enjoyed your different style and your ingenuity when it came to old recipes. You really gave the series a heart and a soul.

Being an Austrian I especially enjoyed the making of the “Sacher Torte” (!), it looks simple but I struggled producing a decent one too.
All the best!

Hello Mary-Anne! I’ve just got off a flight from Shanghai and enjoyed passing the hours by watching repeats of 2011’s TGBBO. You really were fantastic! Have you ever thought of giving 1-1 or small group baking lessons? I’d definitely love to spend a day with you improving my skills!! Clare

I keep checking to see whether you’ve got a book out yet, in fact as lovely as Jo is I was really hoping you’d win the GBBO last year for the selfish reason that yours would be the baking book I’d rush out to buy! So is anything happening on the publishing front?

I’ve been baking since I was little and have only just found out about the GBBO (I live abroad) so I’m watching them all now. You were my favourite to win in series 2, I just love how tasty and real you made everything again! I’m very much back at the oven these days thanks to you, I’ll watch out for that new book of yours. Please continue inspiring us all! Tx

Dear Mary-Anne.
I am so delighted to see someone who actually prefers the essentials (taste, texture, smell) in baking/cooking. There are way too many appearance-driven cooks/bakers. A tendency in society I fear; put on a fine glaze of sugar on s* and amazingly enough people buy it. It is like plastic fantastic, New Speak and a strange politically correctness combined with the Stepford wives in cooking and baking. Ugh.
Yes, I too like my food to look good – but what is the point of e.g. putting fondant on a cake to make it look beautiful if most people really don’t likes the taste of it and therefore removes it before eating the cake? Why not use marzipan? Not as pretty and dainty, but it taste better.
Thank you! Just for being you. I am looking forward to your book. I have confidence that it will suit me!
P.S. I love the fact that you consider and value the history – way too many cookbooks is not enough!

I’m sat here watching the rerun of the 2011 series and amazed at your culinary skills and then it dawned on me that you looked familiar, Surely it’s not the same Mary-Anne who I shared flat with in Cardiff during our PGCE course at SGIHE??

I’m still amazed it’s you that i’m watching on the telly!! I never saw this series as I had a bit of a health scare at the time but doing fine now, Where did all this culinary wizardry come from? Me – i’m still teaching down here in darkest Devon (been teaching that long that i’m now teaching the kids of kids who i first taught when i started!!!). How are you and what are you up to now?

I have just come across this blog after looking for recipes for meringue topped cup cakes. Having found the coconut and lime recipe I continued to peruse your blog, some fantastic recipes which have inspired me to be more experimental with my baking.

Hi Mary-Anne,
I also saw the re run and just wondered if you could tell me the name of the technique to do the striped cakes with your B&Q bargain! I have been looking up allsorts of things trying to find your recipe or a similar one.
Thanks.

Wotchers Lauren! It’s the same technique as the sponge for the chocolate orange mousse cake, except instead of piping the paste, you spread it all over and then scrape it off in lines. hope this helps – have fun! M-A 😀

Hi Mary-Anne,
I made your chocolate and raspberry opera cake (from GBBO) for my best friend’s 30th, and it went down as the best cake she had ever eaten! I am now making her wedding cake for wedding in July, and she has asked for a version of this. Could you offer some advice? Could I make this as a round cake? Thank you!

Wotchers Josie! And congrats for both a successful cake AND getting the wedding commission – no pressure! 😉 You certainly can make this as a round cake – my advice is to cut the circles out of the sheets of joconde sponge, rather than baking them in circles. And for a tiered cake, you’ll need supports – there’s some lovely designs out there in perspex – almost invisible! Good luck and have fun! 😀 M-A

Your Ploughman’s Loaf: sometimes I make it with Humboldt Fog goat cheese, sometimes a good cheddar and dried apple. Sometimes I give you the footnote, sometimes I keep a nervous eye out for lightning strikes.

The orange cardamom croquembouche is satisfying to make and is perfect to enjoy with friends. It took four failed attempts before I served it the first time; I’m fairly new to baking and I’m not overburdened with natural talent. Mastering that was like a small course for me. I’ve since recommend it to others with an interest in baking.

And I love your twist on the Ploughan’s Loaf – more power to your elbow and grab the compliments any way you can!
I’m delighted to hear that the croquembouche is building a fan-base too! You’ve managed to make 4 more than I have! 😉

Keep having fun with the flour and do let me know if any other recipes find success with you and yours. Best wishes M-A 😀

Wotchers Mike! I didn’t know the show was playing in Canada, so thanks for the heads up! Thanks also for your kind words – I tried to do something out of the ordinary. Am excited for the book too! M-A 😀

Hello Ms. MaryAnne! I live in the U.S. and just discovered The Great British Bakeoff. I just finished watching the first season and was rooting for you to win from the very beginning. Was crushed you didn’t win; however, you won in my mind. I am so excited to have found your blog. I can’t wait to try your awesome recipes. You are such an inspiration. May you have great success in your wonderful bakes.

Hi Mary-Anne I thought you made some very clever recipes on the GBBO show it was a difficult to choose who would win,although I think you,Jo and Holly were all worthy winners Congratulations Flo from Western Australia

[…] with it and update it and enjoy it. The first book from former Great British Bake Off contestant Mary-Anne Boermans, Great British Bakes explores a variety of traditional British recipes, especially explaining […]

Hi, Mary Ann. I won the Greek prize and also sent the Woburn Sands recipe book link. Also pre-ordered your forthcoming book. REALLY need your advice over a couple of things.Tried your spekulaas recipe using my Dutch mould but the pattern disappeared during baking. Even though I used the cornflour mix, the dough was hell tn remove from the mould, too. What am I doing wrong?
Second, i too love vintage books, papticularly the inter-war years. I have all 3 Catherine Ives as well as the 1940 Constance Spry. However I find the lack of tin/bowl sizes/capacity, the vagueness about coohing times is preventing me from trying a lot of the baking and desserts. Is there any online forum which can help iron out the probs?

Just finished watching your series of The Great British British Bake-off down here in Oz. I thought you were just so inspired, talented and wonderfully self-deprecating in your baking. Congratulations in making the Grand Final, though I really did think you were consistently top or near top throughout and were deserving of recognition for your depth and breadth of knowledge and the way you pushed yourself and your bakes. I’ll be looking up your recipes and future plans for sharing them – fabulous!

Mary-Anne, I’m a little behind the times. I’m literally watching the final of the British Bake off 2011.. I have been backing you the whole way. I have no idea who will win I’m not going to cheat and Google it.

I just wanted you to know that you have inspired this tired of cooking for her 4 grown daughters & always on a diet husband, wife & mother. My kitchen used to be my best friend, I now want to reintroduce myself to my magic shop.

I just found you so approachable and warm and funny. Also your love for cooking and the history involved in it appealed to me.

I wish you all the success under the sun.. and yes I’m going to buy any book that you produce.

I was delighted to run across your blog and learn about your interest in historic recipes. I love British history and culture and have been enjoying recipes from the past for some time now. Your recipes look wonderful! I am glad to know that you have also published a cookbook, I will be buying a copy so I can read and try out your great recipes!

We have another thing in common, a love for Terry Pratchett’s Discworld novels. I’m the administrator for the Facebook page of the Discworld Bakers Guild (https://www.facebook.com/DWBakersGuild). I hope to include a link to your recipe for “Sausages Inna Bun” soon! 😉

Thanks so much for the recipes and for sharing your passion for great historical cooking. I look forward to reading your book!

Hello, just a quick note to say they are re-running your episodes of the Great British Bake Off in Australia at the moment. And I am so enjoying seeing and hearing you on the show. Not only are your bakes interesting and inventive, but your intelligence, passion, creativity and humour shines through. Love your blog too.

Hello Mary – Anne I just want to say how much I enjoyed watching you on the great British Bake off. I’m very glad I discovered your blog 🙂 I don’t see myself as the best baker but get a lot of help from your fantastic well explained recipes.

Hi Mary Anne,
i can’t seem to find out when your book is coming out.
I just bake at home for my kids,and have huge trouble at birthdays…decorated sponge is there favorite and i can never find a good moist sponge good for fondant,have you a recipe in he book?
By the way love your baking ❤
regards

[…] Initially we were going to try either Laduree’s Sucre (I wussed out of that one) or Mary Anne-Boerman’s Great British Bakes which looks utterly intriguing and inspiring. Then I looked at all those barely-baked-from books on […]

Hi from Sweden! They have been showing the great British bakeoff on Swedish televsion and I soo enjoyed seeing you bake – such creativity, so much thought in what you do! And I also love how you used traditional British recepies. And I’m soo happy to have found your blog
!

Hello from Bath, I love the look of your Wood Street Cake (1675) recipe. I’ve tried it twice but neither time was the mixture “rather wet and similar to a modern fruit cake mix, too wet to knead”. On the contrary it was far drier than any yeast dough I’ve made. I wondered whether there was a problem with the proportions? Your recipe calls for 600g flour – perhaps it should be 500g? I’d love to make this as my Christmas cake so hope very much you can help. Michèle

Hi again Mary-Anne, would you have time for another question on the Wood Street Cake recipe? It asks for 2 x sachets (14g) fast-action yeast: is each sachet 14g i.e. total of 28g fast yeast? Many thanks, Michèle

Hi Mary-Anne,
We have just seen the final episode of the 2011 series (in Kenya we are a bit behind!). We thought you were wonderful! Congratulations for your successful blog and we’re looking forward to following your posts.

Hi Mary-Anne,
Greetings from Minnesota! I’ve just finished watching GBBO series 2 online. Congratulations on making it all the way until the end. Your baking knowledge and willingness to experiment with different techniques and flavors was very inspiring! I look forward to trying some of the recipes on your blog. Best wishes for continued success!

Hi Mary-Anne,
Greetings from Minnesota! I’ve just finished watching GBBO series 2 online. Congratulations on making it all the way until the end. Your baking knowledge and willingness to experiment with new techniques and flavors was very inspiring! Baking is fairly new hobby for me, one my husband heartily encourages. I’m looking forward to trying out the recipes on your blog. Best wishes for continued success!

I just recently watched The Great British Bake Off, and ended up finding and purchasing your book on Amazon.com. Everything I saw you bake was just amazing; and I was impressed how everything had a spin of your own.
So-now, I’m going to give your recipes a go! Granted-I’m a bit daft on converting measurements and such over to the American version, but I’m up for the challenge.
I hope.
🙂

Hello Mary-Anne! I love GBBO so much, I’ve watched all of the seasons multiple times. You’re one of my favorite bakers from across all 5 seasons – I loved your feisty attitude and your ability to laugh off mistakes. Not to mention your food looked AMAZINGLY good, and so creative. One of your creations that I’ve always wanted to make was your Roasted Cauliflower, Cheese, and Caramelized Onion Quiche. Roasted cauliflower and caramelized onions are both major weaknesses of mine – I’ll make some for a recipe, but then I can’t stop just eating them from the pan! Is your recipe for that delicious looking quiche available somewhere online? I’ve got the image of it on the screen right now and I want to try it so bad! Thank you!

Wotchers Meredith!
Thank you for taking the time to drop by with such lovely compliments!
I thought the BBC had published the recipe, but after checking, seems I was mistaken.
I’ll add it to the list for the blog!
M-A 😀

Hi MaryAnn! Greetings from Vancouver Canada. Have just been watching all the GBBO’s. I am absolutely addicted. Then I found your blog and am so impressed with your knowledge and the unusual, beautiful bakes you have introduced me to. Thanks Mary Anne, Much continued success and I look forward to reading your blog on a regular basis. Just signed up!

So glad you’re having fun watching the Bake Off!
And thank you for your kind words – It’s great to get feedback that others find the recipes I choose as interesting as I do!
More power to your baking elbow!
Too many exclamation marks!
Eep!

Wotchers Cindy!
Thank you so much for dropping by with such kind words!
Was GBBO transmitted over there, or did you find it online?
I can usually tell when it’s being shown, as the GBBO recipes on the blog have a surge in popularity – but not recently.
Glad you like the blog – I shall try and keep it entertaining and a little quirky 😉
Happy Baking!
M-A

I’ve been watching on You Tube and have now caught up. Season 6 is posted every Friday. You are still my favorite of all the contestants. Your knowledge of the history of baking continues to educate and inspire. I am a TERRIBLE baker…much more of a natural cook, something I love. But watching you and the other contestants bake has inspired me to want to learn. So thank you for that. I have sent many a friend to you tube to watch GBBO. As you know the American version failed. But I have watched the Irish and Australian versions. GBBO is still the best. Thanks for writing back. It is a pleasure to “chat” with you. Can’t wait for your next blog.

While over the Holiday break I discovered the GBBO and was soon an avid fan! I just finished season 2….and you were my absolute favorite! (although…everyone did very well) I loved your attitude as well as your glorious recipes! Growing up, I baked a lot with my grandmother and now that my kids are a little older, I am looking forward to getting back to something I loved so much…..I am so excited to have found your blog and look forward to attempting some of your creations!

Hi Mary-Anne. I just finished watching your season of the great British bake off and I am very excited to follow your blog. I loved you and your attitude and sense of humour. Hoping to find all that in this blog! Best wishes from Australia!

Hi ya Mary-Anne!
Just finished Season 2 and fell in love with your baking and your delightful self. It was exciting to see what you were going to create each episode..so rustic and inventive, you, to me, sparked an excitement for creative baking and pushing the limits..all with a cheerful laugh and bubbly demeanour. I was also blown away by your extensive knowledge and unique take on classic recipes. Anywhoooo just rambling on here, but really glad to see you are still producing recipes and still experimenting. Can’t wait to check out your book!
All the Best from British Columbia, Canada
Courtney

Just got done watching your season and was so exciting to watch. All you guys have such a passion and talent for baking it is amazing. At the end all I wanted to do was sit you all down, for tea and talk, talk and talk. Please continue and explore your extraordinary talent.

Hello Mary-Anne! I’ve just bought your book, after following you on GBBO, and following this blog. Just wanted to say, fantastic job! I love the amount of work and obvious passion that has gone into ‘Great British Bakes’, and aswell as it being a great collection of recipes, it’s also a fascinating read. I know I’m going to get a LOT of use out it, definitely my kind of baking! 😉

Hi Mary-Anne,
I’m not sure if you’d remember me, but I was at Dover Court years ago when you were there in Singapore. I was local and taught special ed. Jane Maiden who was there at the same time is currently visiting me in San Diego, California.
She told me about how fabulously you are doing in the culinary world. It’s so fabulous to see that.

Just watched the Christmas bake off. What recipe do you use for the speculaa crumb and how do you then convert into buttercream. My husband is also Dutch and speculaas and speculaa brokken are his and my children’s favourite. I would love to know what recipe you use so that I can make them rather than having to smuggle packets back when we visit lol. Hope you can help.

Hi Mary Anne, greetings from Saskatchewan Canada! I just finished watching series 2 of GBBO and you were my favourite contestant. I thought your bakes were great! I look forward to reading this blog and will ask my English friends to bring your cookbook back for me.

Hi M-A, I am almost finished watching your season of GBBO and you are my favorite! I am writing from Cleveland, Ohio, in the USA and I am VERY curious about syllabub. Is it a drink or a dessert or both. Really I just love the name and want to try it.

Wotchers Elisabeth!
So glad you enjoyed Series 2 😀
In answer to your syllabub question – yes!
Syllabub exists on a sliding scale, from a boozy drink with a light froth on top – rather like an ice-cream float – to a mousse-like cream infused with sugar and alcohol that lasts for several days unrefrigerated.
The version I used was towards the solid end of the scale, known as Everlasting Syllabubs, because they didn’t collapse in a couple of hours.
It is indulgent and delicious – I do hope you give it a go!
M-A 😀

I have just watched the 2011 bakeoff. (Nz)
You killed me with the exploding icing bag and then Sacha on the cake. Ive been unwell with bronchitis and needed that laugh even though it brought on a coughing fit. Thank you.

My wife and I just watched season 2 of the great British Bake and so enjoyed watching you bake. You were our favorite contestant in all 7 seasons! Your personality and positivity are the best. Your bakes are fantastic. Can’t wait to read your book!

I’ve started baking the last few months but I’m a student so ingredients can be a bit expensive when you’re on a budget! Out of your recipes are there any that a newbie can try whilst not breaking my bank (like many other peoples recipes seem to do!)

Wotchers Gem!
Thanks for the question – to which I say, luckily, there’s LOADS of budget friendly recipes here.
So many, that I need a little help narrowing them down.
What kind of food are you wanting to make?
If you give me some hints, I can point you at the most suitable recipes.
M-A 😀

A lot of these recipes are short on detail and open to interpretation. A few of our volunteers and I have tried making different things over the last few years. We discuss the results on the project discussion forum under the hashtag #Recipes2Try: https://www.zooniverse.org/projects/zooniverse/shakespeares-world/talk/228. We’d love it if you gave these a whirl some day!

Mary-Anne! I’m so happy to have found your blog. I stumbled upon seasons 1-3 online & loved watching you bake was intrigued by your knowledge. I ordered your cookbook a week ago, and have been savoring every page. I live in America, and started baking British cakes with some success, but I was never quite sure if the texture was correct. After about a year, I decided our plain flour has more gluten that British. Also, our SR flour has more baking powder as well as more gluten. I order my flour from England, and my bakes are so much better. I also have to order tons of ingredients that we don’t have here, and I have a cabinet full of baking supplies. Even our baking tins are different sizes! I just wanted you to know how much I admire you and your knowledge of the history of cooking and baking. Again, your book is amazing. Thank you!

I just finished binge reading Great British Bakes, and it was amazing. There are tons of recipes I can’t wait to try. I had to order another bread tin, some egg white powder, and saffron though. I’m 70 years old and became hooked on learning how to bake British cakes,pies, tarts, etc. Thank you so much for all the new recipes. I have a lot of baking ahead of me!

Mary-Anne, I am also American and just finished watching series two of the GBBO. I so enjoyed watching you and very much liked your knowledgeable approach to baking and your inventiveness. You are so talented, and your comments about Jo near the end were lovely. Thank you for being such a wonderful participant in the show, and good luck to you in all your endeavors.